Frear Park
Park
23 acres0.7 mi of trail
Perimeter Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Photo: UpstateNYer · CC BY-SA 3.0B−Outdoors
Outdoors in Brunswick
Brunswick has 414 acres of parks, 33 for every 1,000 residents
The biggest trail networks: Frear Park (0.7 mi). 45% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 2% of Brunswick’s land is conserved, about 576 acres.
Ahead of 48% of U.S. towns · #566 of 758 in New York. What drives it
Conserved land
2%
576 acres · of 44.4 sq mi of land
Trails
11 mi
0.3 per sq mi of land
Park land
414 ac
33 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
45%
of residents within ½ mile
Highest peak
1,171 ft
Mount Rafinesque
Lakes & rivers
3
1 beach
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Brunswick have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Brunswick is ahead of 48% of U.S. towns, #566 of 758 in New York. Park acres per resident hold the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
B−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Brunswick’s overall grade.
Conserved land2% of the land · typical NY town 5% · U.S. 4%C+Trails0.3 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (11 mi) · NY 0.4 · U.S. 0.4B−Park land33 acres of park per 1,000 residents (414 acres) · NY 31 · U.S. 13B+Parks close to home45% of residents within a half mile of a park · NY 70% · U.S. 72%C+
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 48%
LessMore
New York towns of 2,500+ (758)Ahead of 25%
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from C+ to B. Trails and many small parks come from OpenStreetMap, mapped by volunteers, so coverage varies from town to town; the half mile is a straight line from each census block, so a river or highway in the way isn’t counted against it.
PAD-US, OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors), Census 2025 Gazetteer and 2020 blocks; details in Sources below. How TownRatings grades the outdoors →
The map
Conserved land, trails & bike routes
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it.
Easements protect land from building but are usually private.© OpenStreetMap contributors · USGS PAD-US
Places to walk
Pick a walk
The longest trail network is Frear Park, with 0.7 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
HVCC
Nature preserve
63 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Brunswick Sports Complex
Park
25 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Poesten Kill Bends Preserve
Managed by Hudson Taconic Lands
10 acres0.2 mi of trail
Red Trail
Dogs on leash
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
All 5 parks & preserves
Frear Park23 acres · 0.7 mi of trail
DirectionsPoesten Kill Bends Preserve10 acres · 0.2 mi of trail · Hudson Taconic Lands
Brunswick Vanderheyden Reservoir Park7 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsHVCC63 acres
Brunswick Sports Complex25 acres
Who protects it
576 conserved acres
2% of Brunswick’s land. Who manages Brunswick’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Land trusts & nonprofits423 ac
Town or city182 ac
USDA easements (NRCS)157 ac
Regional Water Districts19 ac
State conservation3 ac
Private owners1 ac
Agricultural Easement · 351 acConservation Easement · 214 acLocal Park · 182 acLocal Resource Management Area · 19 acOther Easement · 7 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 372 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 3 of 24 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Town of Brunswick Land Local Park | Town or city | 172 | Unknown |
| Troy Bureau Of Water Lands Local Resource Management Area | Regional Water Districts | 19 | Open |
| Frear Park Local Park | Town or city | 5 | Open |
| Troy City Lands Local Park | Town or city | 4 | Open |
| Friends of the Dyken Pond Center Ltd Land Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 3 | Open |
| Brunswick Little League Lands Private Other or Unknown | Land trusts & nonprofits | 3 | Closed |
| Private Lands Private Recreation or Education | Private owners | 1 | Closed |
| Hilltop Park Local Park | Town or city | 1 | Open |
Things to do
8 places to go in Brunswick
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Brunswick
Brunswick Vanderheyden Reservoir Park BeachIn Brunswick Vanderheyden Reservoir Park
DirectionsPlaygrounds in Brunswick
4 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Waterfalls in Brunswick
2 waterfalls without a name on the map.
Peaks in Brunswick
Mount Rafinesque1,171 ft elevation
DirectionsTrails & water
2 named trails and 3 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 0.5 mi
Perimeter Trail0.4 mi
Red Trail0.2 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
0.0 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
Courts & fields
18Golf
9Tennis
7Baseball
4Basketball
1Football
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →3 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
When to get out
May is the best month for walking in Brunswick
NOAA’s 1991–2020 normals for the town and the daylight at its latitude. Outlined months have long days, highs of 59 to 86 °F and little rain for the place.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daylight (h) | 9.4 | 10.5 | 11.8 | 13.3 | 14.6 | 15.3 | 15.0 | 13.9 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.7 | 9.0 |
| High (°F) | 32 | 35 | 44 | 58 | 70 | 78 | 82 | 81 | 73 | 61 | 48 | 37 |
| Rain (in) | 2.7 | 2.3 | 2.8 | 3.3 | 3.7 | 4.4 | 4.4 | 4.2 | 4.2 | 4.1 | 3.1 | 3.4 |
February is the driest month (2.3 in) and July the warmest (highs of 82 °F). 4.4 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Brunswick →
Next door
Brunswick and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Grafton70 miTroy23 miPoestenkill19 miNorth Greenbush13 miBrunswick11 miPittstown8.2 miSchaghticoke6.3 miWynantskill4.7 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brunswick | 2% | 0.3 | 33 | 45% | B− |
| Troy | 8% | 2.2 | 10 | 96% | A |
| North Greenbush | 1% | 0.7 | 5 | 54% | C+ |
| Poestenkill | 6% | 0.6 | 35 | 27% | B |
| Wynantskill | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Grafton | 17% | 1.6 | 2,545 | 45% | A |
| Schaghticoke | 7% | 0.1 | 46 | 48% | B |
| Pittstown | 11% | 0.1 | 620 | 26% | B |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Brunswick
Where can I hike in Brunswick?
The longest trail networks: Frear Park, 0.7 miles; Poesten Kill Bends Preserve, 0.2 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Brunswick is conserved land?
2% of its land, against a typical 5% for a New York town and 4% nationally (PAD-US). Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors: easements are usually private land.
Are dogs allowed on Brunswick’s trails?
OpenStreetMap records dogs as welcome at Poesten Kill Bends Preserve (on leash). For the rest, check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Brunswick?
23,747 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Brunswick or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 414 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Brunswick have?
Ahead of 48% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #566 of 758 in New York. The grade combines the share of land that is conserved, miles of mapped trail per square mile of land, park acres per 1,000 residents and the share of residents within a half mile of a park. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
Trail talk
Conditions, parking and favorite walks from Brunswick neighbors.
Share a tip
Sources
Where this page comes from
Conserved and public land: USGS Protected Areas Database of the United States (PAD-US), service updated July 2026. Parks, trails, playgrounds, beaches and other places: OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL), map data as of 2026-10-28. Land and water area: Census 2025 Gazetteer. Residents near a park: 2020 Census blocks. National Register: National Park Service. How TownRatings grades the outdoors →